Category Archives: Quirky

This years Decorex event was again spectacular. Set in the grounds of the picturesque Royal Chelsea Hospital and housing some of the globe’s most exquisite interiors, luxury fabric stalls and future trend setters.

The marquee was bustling with designers, suppliers and business folk perusing each stand for something to take their fancy.

One area that certainly took the biscuit was the entrance. Designed by legendary British Interior Designer Nicky Haslam, the space was made to resemble a serene underwater bedroom and study.

Nicky Haslam

Dainty 3D flowers lined the walls, silver silk and velvet fabrics draped over the bed which was set inside a giant oyster shell, positioned in between two large statues. The floors were scattered with sea shells and a vintage film was projected behind the desk accompanied by soft Jazz music.

As a Decorex Blogger runner up, I was invited by Decorex to be involved in a special tweet-up gathering at the event where I met fellow bloggers from the design world and those involved in Blogtour2011 who had travelled over from America.

Just before the tweet-up was about to start, all the bloggers had the rare opportunity to meet Nicky Haslam himself in the Press Room and engage in a short question and answer session.

He sat with everyone for around half an hour sharing his experiences, design tips and advice. The group were hooked and I could see the severe disappointment in their faces when the time came for him to go. But not before a few pictures of course!

Then it was up and onwards to the tweet-up which was a huge success. It was fantastic to converse with other bloggers and be able to exchange tips and experiences. Although, I did have an embarrassing moment when I was asked what my “Twitter handle” was and I replied with, “sorry what’s that?”. So, I’m not as techi savvy as I thought, but on the upside I’ve learned a number of new tricks and terms from the bloggers across the pond. Thank you guys!

Among the top designs of the day for me, were a collection of stunning circle lights made by French company Le Deun Luminaires. The thin handmade lights are made from energy efficient LED’s which last for over 800,000 hours and don’t get hot whilst turned on. Believe me I tested them!

Another great find I know will be popular with the boys, is Billiard Room Ltd. They had two rather exciting tables on show at the event. One which looked like it had been beamed down from space, with it’s hollow centre, sleek white outer shell and bright orange felt lining. The other, lay on top of a metal grille base with neon blue lights fitted underneath and a steel brushed border along the table top. I hear footballers running!

There are of course many more exciting designs that I’d love to include but would simply spoil it for those who will be trotting along later this week. And for those keen bloggers out there look out for Decor8’s Holly Becker today, she’ll be giving a seminar called “Blogging your way for Designers”, I’m deeply upset that I can’t make it to see her but if anyone can fill me in please

This design is something I know all the ladies will just want to sink their teeth into let alone their derrière! The Muffin Pouffe is designed by Director and Founder of Design Ltd, Matteo Bianchi who likes to mix traditional Italian style with a London “edge.”

The pouffe can be made solid or to have hidden storage in the base, which is perfect because you can’t have enough places to hide things! It’s cheeky, fun, made from luxurious fabrics and in comes a variety of tastes. I’ll have mine hot out of the oven with extra chocolate please!

Matteo is exhibiting his collection of fine treats at this years Tent event as part of London Design Festival 2011 if you want to see more. It runs from 22nd September – 25th September in the Old Truman Brewery, London.

Street Artist Slinkachu was born in Devon in 1979 and moved to the hustle and bustle of London in 2002 to pursue a career in commercial art and design. Then in 2006, the anonymous artist embarked on the first installment of his street art collection, the “Little People Project” in 2006, which has attracted attention worldwide.

Slinkachou uses miniature figurines of people and abandons them in various satirical situations on the streets of London, based around themes of anonymity, alienation and loneliness inspired by city-living. You can choose from a number of this artists though provoking imagery in the form of a poster, badge or model from The Andipa Gallery in London.

As you all know, I’m a huge fan of up-cycling, so when I came across Melody Rose’ designs I must say I got very excited! The Canadian born designer, Melanie Roseveare, lives and works in West London, re-vamping various china with quirky images from humming birds and skulls to 50’s pin-up girls.

My favorite pieces from her collection are the skull tea cups and plates. I just adore how Melanie has fused the eerie skull image with dainty bone china. Her designs are available to buy from www.notonthehighstreet.com or you can go direct to her website for personalised commissions and enjoy the array of rather splendid designs.

If you’re lucky enough to be whisked off into the sunset for a romantic weekend break with the other half, the ambience and atmosphere of your hotel room play’s a major part in making or breaking your holiday experience.

Well, if you decide you want something a little more out of the ordinary, stay at the Maison Moschino Hotel in Milan and you’ll feel like you’ve fallen down the rabbit hole and stepped into a dreamland. A branch of the high-end fashion brand Moschino, the hotel houses 65 quirky rooms designed around the theme of fairy tales, to give guests a rather exciting and adventurous experience.

As it’s Monday, the doom and gloom day of the week, I thought I’d bring a bit of colour into your day with this super cosy, multi-coloured knitted lamp by Melanie Porter.

This piece is certainly fashion forward and the perfect Autumn/Winter accessory for the home. You may be thinking WINTER – ALREADY? Well, yes I am and we all need to get prepared because the leaves are starting to fall and the summer nights are slowly fading away. Harrods even has christmas decorations up – so I’ve heard!

That aside, this whopper of a lamp is hand woven by the Knitwear Designer herself and each piece is bespoke. The design comes in a range of colours with one named “Freya”, which has a white base and coloured flowers made from felted material around the shade. Simply gorgeous!

If you want to get your hands on one of Melanie’s lamps, prices range from £400 – £550 and are available from MyDeco or direct from her website.

Today I’ve chosen Laura’s range of bright lavender bags which would look absolutely delightful scattered along a windowsill, hung on a door handle/wardrobe or placed on a dressing table. Oh, of course there is the benefit of making a room smell of delicious lavender as well!

You can get your mitts on a bag for £12 and order through Laura’s website, which features many more designs from wallpaper to lampshades and stitched art work.

This Design of the Day will certainly make your ears prick up and eyes open wide! Here is a revolutionary design by Swedish Artist Camilla Diedrich, that will transform any wall in any home into a glowing feature piece! Her fiber-optic wallpaper collection, NatureRay Charles, is simply mesmerising with its subdude lines and feminine flower motifs, which project out the light.

Diedrich was drawing on her computer one day and accidentally slipped, knocking her keyboard and changing the appearance of the drawing making it extremely light. She then associated this with how blind people might view the world and the musician Ray Charles popped into her head. His name was then adopted as the collection’s title.

The are 8 different colours of paper to choose from so a colour to suit every personality! However, I’m struggling to find an explanation for how the light is sourced, powered fitted within the paper, so if anyone had a clue please give me holla, I’m dying to know!

A team of designers have a taken one of the worlds most pressing environmental issues and created a piece which speaks louder than words. Designers Ricardo Casas, Alejandro Castro, Héctor Esrawe, Emiliano Godoy and Cecilia León de la Barra have produced a thought provoking rug, which contrasts it’s oft and pleasant texture with the prickly problem we have surrounding the rapid decline of the Polar bear and melting ice caps.

Ironically named ” Global Warming“, this statement piece is sure to make anyone stop and think whether its placed in a living room, waiting room or café. I’m very impressed with the rugs simple design and how it conveys this message with such impact.

I would definitely have one of these in my home as way of raising awareness of global warming.

Humpty Dumpty sat on the, wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall! We all know the famous children’s nursery rhyme about a poor egg that broke into a thousand pieces after falling from a wall. Well, leading artist Jim Rosenau, has used this ancient tale to create a “tongue-in cheek” bookshelf which reveals to the world a secret….

It seems Rosenau has inside knowledge of who pushed Humpty Dumpty off the wall and has used three individually and carefully sourced books to name the culprit! Not only that , he seems to have found the suspected weapon used by the murderer – AN EGG WHISK!

Acutely named “Who done it?”, the shelf consists of three black and red books which have taken Rosenau years to source and holds a whisk through the middle of the base. I’m just in complete and utter love with Rosenau’s creativity and use of 3-D haiku’s to convey cheeky messages to passers by.

Rosenau creates an array of other wonderful pieces of furniture from his California studio, This and That which are also made from books. It’s no surprise this artist has such a flair for words, as he was raised in a house containing over 5000 books – not short of inspiration then!

You can buy one of Jim Rosenau’s off-the-wall shelves for roughly £600 which isn’t bad for something which is deep in meaning and has taken years to form.